spinstah's reviews
1405 reviews

A Better World by Sarah Langan

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The tension in this builds nicely. After a certain point it becomes clear it’s building to something terrible, but the characters are in denial because how could what they think is going to happen actually be right? The near future dystopia this is set it feels very plausible which was perhaps the creepiest thing of all. 

Nosy Neighbors by Freya Sampson

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a delight on audio. There’s a lot of darkness mixed in - two of the main characters have some significant past emotional trauma - but o real it’s still a hopeful story. 

Deep Singh Blue by Ranbir Singh Sidhu

dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

This is well-crafted but Im struggling to figure out whether I liked it. The characters are not particularly likable and there’s a lot of self-absorption and denial all around, but it’s also told from the POV of a traumatized teenager so I’m not sure it could have been anything else. 

The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older

funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.75

This was a cute sci fi mystery. The language is oddly formal and gives it an old-timey feel even though it’s set in the unspecified far future on a colonized gas giant. That didn’t work particularly well for me but it didn’t detract too much. 

Absolution by Jeff VanderMeer

challenging mysterious slow-paced

3.0

I have no idea what just happened or how it’s supposed to tie into the rest of the story. This requires a full series re-read, which I did not do, to understand the connections. There’s a chunk in the middle with a strong narrative that you can easily follow, but the start and end? Who knows. I almost DNF’d this several times and was skimming by the end. 

Miss Austen Investigates: The Hapless Milliner by Jessica Bull

funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a lot of fun! If you’re a Jane Austen fan, or a fan of semi-anachronistic Regency stories, you’ll like this. 

A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The reveal in this is wild and I’m so glad I went in having no idea. The main character is the most likable unlikable character I e read in a while and I really enjoyed it. The writing is lush and full of gorgeous descriptions of food. However it is also full of gore that’s recounted vey straightforwardly so this will not be for everyone. Looking forward to the discussion about this one. 

Erasure by Percival Everett

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was so sharp, and as I saw someone else say, reminded me that I was an English major. You could  spend several weeks unpacking this in a class. 

Beheld by TaraShea Nesbit

sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I didn’t like this as much as I thought it would. You know what’s coming for most of the book but it still felt anticlimactic and the rest of the book couldn’t really sustain itself. I liked that it was told from the perspective of the women but  they were primarily focused on the men, which left me feeling like I would have rather had an omniscient narrator so I could get more of different character’s motivations. 

It Lasts Forever and Then It's Over by Anne de Marcken

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is a lovely, reflective book told from the perspective of an undead person, which is not something I expected to encounter. But it is! The main character mostly thinks about the person they love, and the gory bits are minimal and in line with the overall tone. I can see why this won the Le Guin prize (2024).